


Michael in the Theater

by notimmortal



Category: Be More Chill - Iconis/Tracz
Genre: Gen, I wrote this with hella pining Micheal in mind, I'm seriously projecting onto these characters, Kind of angsty, M/M, Mentions of Love Simon, Mostly Platonic, Post-Canon, So could be read as just pining, Specifically Michael, Which was a top notch film, could be romantic if you squint, idk - Freeform, michael centric
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-17
Updated: 2018-03-17
Packaged: 2019-04-01 09:40:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13995549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/notimmortal/pseuds/notimmortal
Summary: All Michael wanted to do was go and see Love, Simon.Now he was freaking out in a theater, alone.Or"Michael, who you don't know. Michael flying solo. Michael in the theater by himself."





	Michael in the Theater

**Author's Note:**

> Hello hello!
> 
> These boys (and just this musical in general) have become my entire life recently and I adore it.  
> I also saw Love, Simon today (if you couldn't tell) and really enjoyed that.
> 
> As stated in the tags, this is me self projecting (again)  
> The majority of this fic is based on what happened to me this week, with the only exception being the final section after Michael saw the movie. More on that at the end if you care to know.
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

It was originally supposed to be a Michael-and-Jeremy thing, like most things in Michael’s life were. 

 

“Come on, Jer! Friday night, we get some sushi and go see the movie!” Michael exclaimed one day as he and Jeremy drove to school. “It’ll be awesome!”

 

Jeremy smiled at Michael, “Alright, I’m down, let’s do it.”

 

The movie in question was  _ Love, Simon _ , Michael had been waiting ages to see it, having loved the book it was based on. Jeremy, ever the good friend, was supposed to go with him. Up until a week before, he was confirmed to be going with him.

 

“Michael, I’m really, really sorry but I had to pick up someone’s shift at work so I won’t be able to go to the movie,” Jeremy blurted out the Monday before the movie was to be released.

 

Michael felt his heart crack some, wishing that crushing disappointment would just fade away. But he didn’t let it show, smiling at Jeremy and saying, “Don’t worry about it, dude. We could always go some other day. And I was going to see if Christine wanted to go anyway, so I won’t be alone.”

 

That’s how it became a Michael-and-Christine thing.

 

The two of them had become close after the whole Squip thing. Even after she and Jeremy broke up (staying good friends), Michael still found himself talking to Christine all the time. When Michael had invited her to see the movie with him, she was on board right away.

 

“That sounds great, Mikey!” she nearly squealed in excitement. “I wouldn’t miss it for anything!”

 

But, as it would turn out, she would have to miss it. 

 

It was the day the movie had come out, and Michael was hyped. However, his mood was soon killed when Christine ran up to him, “God, I’m so sorry, Mikey, but it’s the only day my lab group can meet up and we have two labs to finish. I thought we could do them over the weekend but…”

 

Michael forced a smile, “Don’t worry about it, Chrissy. Your labs are way more important than some movie.”

 

“We can go next week, though! And maybe Jeremy will be able to go with us then,” Christine offered, an apologetic smile still plastered on her face. 

 

“Yeah, we can totally do that. But I might still go today, just because I’m so desperate to avoid spoilers,” Michael said with a fake laugh, trying to hide his disappointment. 

 

Just as Christine was going to try and comfort Michael again, Rich ran up to them, “What’s up my dudes?”

 

“Rich, are you busy tonight?” Michael asked, ignoring the short boy’s question.

 

Rich pondered that for a moment. “I shouldn’t be. Why, what’s up?”

 

“You wanna go get some sushi and see  _ Love, Simon _ with me?”

 

“Yeah, man! Just let me know what time! I have to make sure nothing is going on.”

 

But, because fate was especially cruel, something was going on.

 

“I’m sorry, man, it’s just Jake has this invitation-only match today and I promised him I’d be there. I thought it was this weekend but it’s tonight, so I won’t be able to go to the movie.”

 

“It’s fine, dude,” Michael said, trying not to let defeat seep into his words. “I’m probably just going to go by myself, then.”

 

Rich smiled apologetically, “Maybe next time?”

 

“Maybe next time,” Michael echoed.

 

***

 

In the end, Michael did decide to go to the movie by himself.

 

He stopped at 7-11, picking up some candy to sneak into the theater, bought himself a ticket and some popcorn, and plopped himself down in a seat in the middle of the theater. Everything was fine.

 

Then he looked around.

 

No one else was seated in his row, despite there being several groups of people in the theater. And it seemed as if everyone had someone else to be there with. There was a group of girls seated in the row in front of him, a couple seated behind him, an even larger group of preteens all the way in the back, the list went on and on. 

 

And then there was Michael.

 

Feeling awkward as everyone chatted idly, waiting for the previews to start, Michael took out his phone and opened Snapchat, posting a picture of the empty chair next to him with the caption “Date night with my fave <3<3<3”. He then shot off a quick text to Jeremy, which read “This is the second saddest thing I’ve ever done. Everyone else here is with friends or on dates. I want to die. But the movie is about to start so I’ll text you after your shift.”

 

He could feel the anxiety creeping up as the lights dimmed, sensing judgement from all the groups around him.  _ I’m such a loser, I couldn’t even get a single  friend to come with me. They probably think I have no friends. That I have nobody at all.  _ His breathing was picking up, but he tried to calm it as the opening scenes of the movie appeared on screen. 

 

Despite his best efforts, these types of thoughts kept popping up.

 

At one point, Whitney Houston’s  _ I Wanna Dance With Somebody  _ came on, and Michael turned next to him to mock the scene, only to find the seat empty. His stomach filled up with dread, remembering being in that bathroom at the Halloween party. It was just like this, Michael all alone with no one to joke with.

 

Multiple moments like that popped up during the film. At one point, Michael started to cry. The scene ended and Michael was starting to get the tears to stop too, but then he remembered how alone he was and started crying even harder, a hand placed over his mouth to keep himself from whimpering. He was able to get himself back under control, and tried his hardest to focus on the movie until the end.

 

***

 

After the movie (which he absolutely adored, even if his situation wasn’t that great), Michael opened his phone to find several messages. Some were from his friends, laughing at his Snapchat story. The rest were from Jeremy, who was demanding he come and see him once the movie was over. Michael shot off a quick “Okay” and headed over to Jeremy’s.

 

Jeremy opened the door right away. “Sorry about tonight, man.”

 

Michael shrugged. “It’s fine. I enjoyed myself. The movie was really good.” The two boys had been making their way into Jeremy’s room, sitting down on his bed.

 

Jeremy smiled slightly at that. “I’m glad the movie was good, but I know you didn’t enjoy yourself, Michael.”

 

Michael shrugged again. “Yeah, it was a little lonely, and a little awkward, but…”

 

“You said it was the second saddest moment,” Jeremy said softly, as if he were afraid of scaring Michael off. “The first… It was the bathroom, wasn’t it?”

 

Michael sighed, looking away from Jeremy. “Look, Jer, we talked about this and I forgive you, so let-”

 

“Michael,” Jeremy said, grabbing Michael’s hand, causing Michael’s eyes to return to Jeremy’s. “I know you said you forgive me, but it’s okay to be upset about it. I was the worst. I left you alone.”

 

“It wasn’t your fault,” Michael protested weakly. 

 

Jeremy gave him a look, then sighed. “In the theater… was it like the bathroom? Again?”

 

“A little,” Michael admitted after a moment. “I just… It’s a movie about relationships, right? Not just romantic ones but also platonic and familial ones and I just… Everyone around me had someone, you know? But I didn’t,” Michael looked at Jeremy, whose face had fallen. “But that’s not your fault, Jer! You had to work, and Christine had to do her lab book, and Rich had to go to Jake’s game. It was out of your control, it was out of my control. It wasn’t your fault.”

 

Jeremy ran a hand through his hair. “I know, Michael, but… God, I just don’t want you to feel like that ever again.”

 

The two boys sat in silence for a few minutes, neither knowing how to continue the conversation. Finally, Jeremy spoke again. “You know, after everything with the Squip, I promised myself that I would never let you feel abandoned again. But I did that anyway. You were alone and I wasn’t there to keep you from being alone.”

 

“I already told you, Jer, it’s not your fault,” Michael said, threading his fingers with Jeremy’s. “Besides, you’re here with me now, right? Making sure I don’t feel alone?”

“I’ll make it up to you,” Jeremy said. “I promise.”

 

Staring at their interlocked hands, Michael smiled, “You already did.”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Comments and kudos are always appreciated but never required. This is my first boyf riends fic, but I would love to write some more! If you have any ideas for this (or any other ships), come bother me on tumblr (ireallyneedabetterusername). I have all my ships in my description.
> 
> That being said, I would like to explain my self projection so if that's not something you're interested in, feel free to walk away now.
> 
> I had been looking forward to seeing Love, Simon for months now and was trying to make plans with my friends for ages. It seemed like we had some solid plans in the works, and then (like always) everyone cancelled on me last minute (all the reasons given by Michael's friends are what my friends told me when they cancelled, though a bit more apologetic). I decided "Fuck it, I'm going today."
> 
> It was kind of a mistake.
> 
> I felt really anxious for the entire movie (the bit about being alone in a row, with the entire rest of the theater filled with couples and groups of friends was also true) and couldn't stop looking at the empty seats next to me. The text Michael sent Jeremy and the snap he posted on his snapchat story are real as well, which is kind of sad in a way.
> 
> I have really low self-esteem, so being alone while watching a movie about various types of relationships just made me feel useless and unwanted. That's why I ended up writing this, because I wanted someone with my story to get a happy ending, to have someone who cared enough to say "No, I don't want you to be alone". These are the kinds of things I can only write, since I don't like bringing up this kind of stuff to my friends. I don't want to bother or annoy them (which is another theme I almost gave to Michael but decided against for this fic).
> 
> So that's why this was written. Thank you again for reading! I hope you got some joy out of this.


End file.
